When Down Looks Like Up: Self-Deceptive Self-Handicapping

In this thesis, I present a novel example of intentional self-deception as embodied in self-handicapping behavior. Self-handicapping is the proactive construction or acquisition of some obstacle to success in some domain, and is employed by individuals primarily as a means of deflecting blame for a failure or negative outcome. I argue that this behavior stands in a mutual, symbiotic relationship to self-deception. On the one hand, self-handicapping is the behavioral instantiation of the biased evidence manipulation which facilitates self-deception; while on the other hand, self-handicapping effectively functions to bias judgments in this way only in case concurrent self-deception sustains the behavioral process. If my account is accurate, the findings support Intentionalist theories of self-deception, broadly, but also highlights behavioral self-handicapping as a phenomenon worthy of philosophical attention

Measuring and modelling optical scattering and the colour quality of white pierid butterfly scales

Copyright © 2009 Optical Society of America. This paper was published in Optics Express and is made available as an electronic reprint with the permission of OSA. The paper can be found at the following URL on the OSA website: http://www.opticsinfobase.org/oe/abstract.cfm?URI=oe-17-17-14729 . Systematic or multiple reproduction or distribution to multiple locations via electronic or other means is prohibited and is subject to penalties under law.Colouration in butterfly wings is due to the interaction of light with a covering of scales on both wing surfaces. A combination of nanostructure in the scales, which reflect or scatter light, and absorption from chemical pigments in the scales and wing substrate create the final colour appearance. We compared the wing scale morphology of the pierid butterfly Pieris rapae (Small White) to the reflectance spectra from its wings. Its wing scales contain a dense array of pterin pigment beads. A positive correlation between bead-array density and wing reflectance, at wavelengths where the pigment does not absorb, was identified and characterised. We observed, however, that light scatter from these beads does not account for all of the broadband light scatter observed from the wings. The rest of the scale structure plays an important role in achieving high light scatter. Furthermore, combining the underlying scattering and absorption mechanisms within the butterfly scales enabled us to quantify the optical characteristics of the samples using CIELab colour theory

Changes in motivation as expertise develops: Relationships with musical aspirations

Recent models of musical motivation have recognised the complex interactions which occur between environmental (cultural, institutional, familial, educational) and internal factors (cognition and affect) in enhancing or reducing motivation. Much previous research has been small scale and not taken account of long term musical aspirations. This article aims to address these issues exploring changes in motivation as expertise develops with a large sample of learners. A total of 3,325 young musicians, aged 6–19 playing a wide range of instruments participated. They represented nine levels of expertise ranging from beginner to higher education conservatoire entry level. Level of expertise was established in terms of the most recent graded independent instrumental examination taken. They were asked to respond to a series of statements on a 7-point Likert scale. The statements focused on well-established elements of motivation including: self-beliefs; enjoyment of musical activities; enjoyment of performance; level of support received from parents, friends and teachers; attitudes towards playing an instrument and perceptions of its value; and beliefs about the importance of musical ability. Participants were also asked to respond to statements about their long term musical aspirations. An exploratory factor analysis provided the basis for the development of a motivational scale which included five sub-scales: social support and affirmation; social life and the value of playing an instrument; enjoyment of performing; self-belief in musical ability; and enjoyment of instrumental musical activities. There were linear trends for each of the five sub-scales in relation to level of expertise with the exception of social support and affirmation. The five sub-scales collectively predicted a composite score relating to aspirations with a multiple R of .64

Are there gender differences in instrumental music practice?

This research aimed to consider whether there were gender differences in the amount of practice undertaken by boys and girls, the practice strategies adopted and motivation to practise. A sample of 2027 girls and 1225 boys aged 6-19 years, ranging in level of expertise from beginner through to conservatory entrance level, playing instruments representative of the classical and popular instruments played in the UK completed a self-report Likert scale questionnaire. There were no statistically significant gender differences in weekly practice time or motivation to practise. Factor analysis of statements relating to practice revealed seven factors. There were statistically significant gender differences in relation to the adoption of systematic practice strategies (girls were more systematic), concentration (boys perceived they had higher levels of concentration) and immediate correction of errors (girls reported more immediate correction). There were no statistically significant gender differences in relation to the organisation of practice, the use of recordings and a metronome, the use of analytic strategies, and the adoption of ineffective practice strategies although for this factor there was a statistically significant interaction between gender and level of expertise

Intelligent Automatic Interpretation of Active Marine Sonar

This dissertation explores the problems raised by the design and construction of a real-time sonar interpreter operating in a three dimensional marine context, and then focusses on two major research issues inherent in sonar interpretation: the treatment of observer and object motion, and the efficient exploitation of the specularity of acoustic reflection. The theoretical results derived in these areas have been tested where appropriate by computer simulation. In the context of mobile marine robotics, the registration of sensory data obtained from differing viewpoints is of paramount importance. Small marine vehicles of the type considered here do not carry sophisticated navigational equipment, and cannot be held stationary in the water for any length of time. The viewpoint registration problem is defined and analysed in terms of the new problem of motion resolution: the task of resolving the apparent motion of objects into that part due to the movement of the observer and that due to the objects' proper motion. Two solutions to this under constrained problem are presented. The first presupposes that the observer orientation is known ~ priori so that only the translational observer motion must be determined. It is applicable to two and three-dimensional situations. The second solution determines both the translational and the rotational motion of the observer, but is restricted to a two-dimensional situation. Both solutions are based on target extensively tested in two tracking techniques, and have dimensions by computer simulation. been The necessary extensions to deal with full three-dimensional motion are also discussed. The second major research issue addressed in this thesis is the efficient use of specularity. Specular echoes have a high intrinsic information content because of the alignment conditions necessary for their generation. In the marine acoustic context they provide a significant proportion of the information available from an acoustic ranger. I suggest a new method that uses directly the information present in specular reflections and the history of the vehicle motion to classify the specular echo sources and infer the local structure of the objects bearing them. The method builds on the output of a motion resolution system. Six distinct types of specular echo source are described and three properties useful for their discrimination are discussed. A suitable inference system for the analysis and classification of specular echo sources is also proposed

Live demonstration: a public engagement platform for invasive neural interfaces

Neural interfaces, and more specifically ones ofthe invasive/implantable variety, today are a topic of muchcontroversy, often making the general public uncomfortable andintimidated. We have thus devised a bespoke interactive demoto help people understand brain implants and their need inthe age of wearable devices, with the secondary objective ofintroducing the wireless cortical neural probe that we, at NGNI(Next Generation Neural Interfaces) lab, are developing

Multivariate statistical data analysis of cell-free protein synthesis toward monitoring and control

The optimization and control of cell free protein synthesis (CFPS) presents an ongoing challenge due to the complex synergies and nonlinearities that cannot be fully explained in first principle models. This article explores the use of multivariate statistical tools for analyzing data sets collected from the CFPS of Cereulide monoclonal antibodies. During the collection of these data sets, several of the process parameters were modified to investigate their effect on the end‐point product (yield). Through the application of principal component analysis and partial least squares (PLS), important correlations in the process could be identified. For example, yield had a positive correlation with pH and NH3 and a negative correlation with CO2 and dissolved oxygen. It was also found that PLS was able to provide a long‐term prediction of product yield. The presented work illustrates that multivariate statistical techniques provide important insights that can help support the operation and control of CFPS processes

Oscillatory behaviour in a lattice prey-predator system

Using Monte Carlo simulations we study a lattice model of a prey-predator system. We show that in the three-dimensional model populations of preys and predators exhibit coherent periodic oscillations but such a behaviour is absent in lower-dimensional models. Finite-size analysis indicate that amplitude of these oscillations is finite even in the thermodynamic limit. In our opinion, this is the first example of a microscopic model with stochastic dynamics which exhibits oscillatory behaviour without any external driving force. We suggest that oscillations in our model are induced by some kind of stochastic resonance.Comment: 7 pages, 10 figures, Phys.Rev.E (Nov. 1999